Tea Party Gives Teen a Lesson in Free Speech

The way the Tea Party tells it, it's all about allowing "the voice of the American people to be heard." But the news that a teenage girl has been receiving violent threats since she challenged Tea Party darling Michele Bachmann to a U.S. History and Civics competition sheds a whole new light on just who exactly is allowed to talk.

In fact, anyone who disagrees with the party is in danger of being "silenced." The more you disagree with them, the louder they'll yell "whore" and threaten to rape you. Doesn't sound very "all" inclusive, does it?

And if that isn't creepy enough, consider this: Amy Myers, Bachmann's would-be opponent, is just 16. She's a high school sophomore who has been on the receiving end of these sort of sexual perversions ever since she wrote a letter to the Minnesota Congresswomanchallenging her to a debate.

Myers' dad said the threats have been limited to the Internet so far -- calls made to her school have only been to ascertain whether she's legit -- but some of the most vitriolic attacks on his daughter included warnings that they could publish the family's home address. It could be said that this is the nature of the Internet. The recent rumors about 13-year-old YouTube sensation Rebecca Black's non-existent pregnancy are evidence enough that people can't see a clear demarcation between what is and isn't appropriate. Waltzing into a child's vagina goes beyond the inappropriate and into the downright disturbing. She's a kid. Calling her a whore crosses the line. Period.

But what makes attacks on Amy Myers especially upsetting is that they're coming from a group of people who claim to be fighting for "all" to be heard. Bachmann herself (who has not been linked to any attacks) says she created the Tea Party Caucus as "a means for everyday Americans to express their views to Members of Congress."

The government, Bachmann claims, has "strayed from the fundamental principles of the Constitution," so she's restoring them. By rights, her supporters should be including "right to free speech" under those Constitutional principles, even to people like Amy Myers who disagree with them.

But these wingnuts are too busy threatening a little girl with rape to be bothered with the Constitution.

Is this just typical Tea Party antics or is this something more disturbing?